New Lease on Life
by Twice Upon A Book
Summary: AU set right after S4-10. Dean finds out he has a daughter he must raise. How will he handle the angst of a preteen girl who just lost her mother? Will Dean leave Sam to deal with everything while he goes out hunting? The boys have their hands full with a custody dispute, homeschooling, rebellion, kidnapping, and their worst fear… Boys. One thing's for sure, the girl is family.
1. Chapter 1

Synopsis:

AU Set directly after S4-10. An old flame of Dean's calls him out of the blue with a stunning revelation: Dean has a daughter. What's even more shocking is the fact that Dean must now raise this child. How will he handle the angst of a preteen girl who just lost her mother? Will Dean leave Sam to deal with everything while he goes out hunting? The boys have their hands full with a custody dispute, homeschooling, rebellion, kidnapping, and their worst fear… Boys. One thing's for sure, the girl is family. Dean will always look out for his family.

Warning: Contains corporal punishment of a minor in later chapters.

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A/N:This is not Beta read, but I am looking for someone to Beta read for the next chapters. If you're interested, please PM Me.

Also, this is dialogue-heavy right now, but that'll even out.

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First part of 4.11 transcipt, shortened:

_SAM wakes from sleeping in the backseat of the car. DEAN is studying some papers._

_SAM: We just finished a job like two hours ago._

_DEAN: Adrenaline's still pumping, I guess. So, what do you think... Cedar Rapids, Tulsa, or Chi-Town?_

_SAM: I am all for working. I really am. But you got us chasing cases nonstop for like a month now. We need sleep._

_DEAN: Yeah, we can sleep when we're dead._

_SAM: You're exhausted, Dean._

_DEAN: I'm good._

_SAM: No, you're not. You're running on fumes, and you can't run forever._

_DEAN: And what am I running from?_

_SAM: From what you told me. Or are we pretending that never happened?_

* * *

Dean was saved from answering Sam when his cell phone started ringing in his pocket. He thanked his lucky stars, because he did not want to go down that road with his brother right now, or ever. Sam sighed heavily and settled himself back in to catch a little more shut-eye.

"Yeah," Dean answered in his usual fashion. The woman on the other end of the line spoke back quietly,

"Dean? Dean Winchester? I've finally found you, haven't I?"

"You mind telling me who this is, and how you got this number?" As always, he was on his guard and a little suspicious. For all he knew, it could be a trap. Could be someone faking a past acquaintance, or a demon trying to locate him. Dean shook his head to quiet the nagging thoughts for a moment so he could focus on what the woman was saying.

"You might not remember me, but you and your father helped me and my family almost thirteen years ago. My name is Sheila Leverett. We kind of… Dated for awhile when you and your father were here investigating. You know, that cursed necklace that was causing all those problems for me? You saved me, Dean." Sheila sounded close to tears.

Dean couldn't blame her, he assumed it was because she was overwhelmed by all the happy memories between the two of them. Hell, he was a great lay.

After clearing his throat and shifting a little in his seat, he answered her,

"I remember quite clearly, all those long nights by the lake. It was awhile ago, wasn't it? 18. Good times. Though I've got to ask, why are you calling me now?" Oh, he remembered all right. Did he ever! He was half hoping that she was calling just to relive the past with him, he'd drop everything and drive to Timbuktu just to be with Sheila again.

"Well, I was just wondering if you're in the same line of work that you were before? What I mean to say is… I need your help, Dean." Ah, a case. Of course. It was apparent to Dean that Sheila's voice was quivering, even over the crappy cell connection. He was kind of a sucker for a damsel in distress, especially one as beautiful as the one on the other end of the line. He vaguely wondered if she'd aged gracefully.

"Yeah, well, I'm in between cases at the moment and I can certainly look into your… problem." He said, smirking to himself "Just give me the details. Where, when, what happened, what do you think we're dealing with?" Dean reached over and popped open the glove compartment. He had to shuffle around all the fake IDs, but he quickly found the small notebook and pen he was hunting for. He took the cap off the pen with his teeth, and waited.

"Three Lakes, Wisconsin. Just look me up when you get here. Sheila Leverett. It's just that I don't know how to explain over the phone, but I promise it'll be worth your while to come. You just have to be here to understand." The poor woman sounded terrified. Dean wasn't surprised that she couldn't describe the events, most civilians couldn't; At least not without fear of sounding crazy.

"Still in Three Lakes, huh?" He reached over to the glove compartment once again to grab the map, and shook it open. Luck was with him tonight. Dean smiled as he did some quick calculations in his head, "Well it looks like it'll only be about a 16 hour drive, add in a couple hours for stops and traffic, from where we are in Stratton, Nebraska. I guess you can expect me and my brother for dinner tomorrow night."

"Yes! Thank you so much! Thank you, Dean, this means so much to me. I'll have dinner waiting for you." She hung up the phone right after that, without even a goodbye. Dean hadn't really meant that they'd be there to _eat_ dinner, but she didn't seem put out by the idea.

Dean fired up the engine of his baby, and U-turned to get back onto the highway. He glanced back, seeing Sam rubbing the sleep out of his face.

"Rise and shine, Sammy. New case. Three Lakes, Wisconsin. We'll be there by tomorrow night." He actually seemed a little happy.

Sam didn't want to press his luck or anything with Dean's newfound good mood, but his inquisitive nature got the better of him. "So, what're we dealing with?"

"No idea," Dean replied emphatically. He remained totally focused on the dark road ahead. Sam stared at him with an open mouth.

"You mean you didn't get any details? How do you even know this is our kind of case?"

"I just know, okay?" Dean considered the discussion closed and snapped the radio on.

* * *

It was a bit of a long drive in one go-round, even for the Winchester brothers who'd spent their lives on the road, in the same car no less. Finally, though, they arrived. It took only minutes to pinpoint Sheila's address in the phonebook, and considerably less to give her a head's-up phone call to say they'd be there within thirty minutes.

The doors to the Impala creaked loudly as the boys got out of the car at Sheila's driveway. Dean had a little pep in his step, and Sam was a little baffled by it. Neither spoke as they waited for an answer to Dean's commanding knock. It only took the woman about ten seconds to fling the door open. Sheila hugged Dean fiercely around the neck,

"I'm so glad you're here," she whispered. She quickly broke off the hug and looked up at him.

Dean smiled, and then hesitated. Sheila looked… frail. Not to mention tired. She had dark circles under her eyes, and it was evident that she had recently lost an unhealthy amount of weight in a short time. She held the door open wider and beckoned the brothers inside. They followed her to the dining room and made themselves comfortable.

Sam got right down to business as Sheila took a casserole out of the oven and set it down in front of the Winchesters.

"So what can you tell us about what's been happening? Are people dying? Have there been attacks? Sightings? Strange happenings?" The words from his mouth were almost a script by now.

The wary woman sighed and sat down at the table,

"I'm afraid not. There's nothing like that going on." Both of the men stiffened up and were instantly on their guard. "I apologise for bringing you two here under false pretenses, but my intentions were honorable I swear. I just had to talk to you face to face, Dean. It's life or death."

Dean was a little offended at being misled, but he could see that Sheila was in distress and he was willing to listen. Sam had an I-told-you-so look on his face, but Dean ignored him.

"Alright, well you got me here. Just tell me the truth about what's going on." He leaned back in the chair and settled in to listen to whatever the woman had to say, though he had to admit that it wasn't with a totally open mind. After all, she had lied to him once already. Sheila glanced at Sam, and then back to Dean,

"Perhaps we could discuss this privately, after dinner?" Her voice was slightly hoarse with nervousness. Dean shook his head.

"Whatever this is about, you can say it in front of my brother. It's best we get this over with now instead of later." He pressed his lips tightly together to also keep his rising anger in check. Sam shifted uncomfortably. He wanted to be anywhere but here right now, because this matter was obviously between Sheila and Dean. The woman resigned herself to just come right out and say what she had to say.

"Dean, you have a 12 year old daughter. _We _have a daughter, and her name is Valerie," she declared with no hesitancy. Whatever Dean was expecting her to say to him, it wasn't this. He sat in stunned silence, taking it all in and trying to find words.

"Are you sure she's mine?" he rasped out when he was able to catch his voice. Sheila nodded gravely.

"I'm absolutely positive. Although, I do understand if you're not sure. I was prepared for this. I have a friend who works in the lab, and she can give you a paternity test. As a matter of fact," she continued, gaining confidence with each word. "I _insist_ that we do it. You need to be sure, and so do… others." She looked as if a huge weight had just been taken off her shoulders.

"Wait, wait… Just hold on a damn minute! Why now, all of a sudden, do you try to get ahold of me? What's this really about? Is it money, like, child support or something?" Dean stood up angrily and paced around the dining room to try and calm his brain and _think_. Sam glanced back and forth between the two, ready to intervene if necessary but otherwise did nothing. Sheila was surprisingly calm about the whole thing, and accepted Dean's outburst. In fact, she had expected it.

"Dean, listen. It's not about money. I had… have… _no other choice_. I know the kind of life you have, on the road all the time. Going from one bad motel to the next, living off of fast food. _I know what you do for a living_. It's just that… I'm dying. Valerie needs you, Dean. She needs her father now more than ever." Sheila's eyes shone with unshed tears, willing Dean to believe her and praying for him to accept his role.

Dean sat back down heavily. He couldn't comprehend it all right now. He was quick thinking in a fight, or during a vampire attack. But now, faced with fatherhood, he was dumbfounded. He held his head in his hands and confessed,

"I don't even know what to say. Where is Valerie, can I see her?" He was starting to believe in the possibility of the whole situation. If there was anything to be said about Dean Winchester, it was that he faced problems head-on or ignored them altogether. He chose to face this head-on.

"Valerie isn't here right now, she's spending the night at a friend's house. She doesn't know you're here yet, and I wanted to wait until you calmed down to introduce you." She smiled apologetically at Dean. She wished she didn't have to break the news like this.

"I'll do the paternity test first thing in the morning. If she is mine, I just wanted to let you know that I'll take full responsibility… Wait, did you say dying?" Dean was shocked again, but he couldn't think of the consequences of those words at the moment. He didn't even think of the possibility of raising a little girl all on his own. One thing at a time.

"Yes, I'm dying. Inoperable Breast Cancer, 6 weeks or less to live. Valerie knows, she has for some time now. She's been very strong about the whole situation, you would be so proud of her." Sheila didn't want to go through any more details right now, and she could see that Dean couldn't handle any more information. "Now, dinner's getting cold. Let's just dig in, shall we?" Both the boys were grateful for that announcement and picked up their forks as Sheila dished out the casserole.

It was an awkward, silent dinner. No one spoke. No one even made eye contact. Instead, everyone just focused on their food and wallowed in their own thoughts. Everyone was thinking something different, though it was on the same subject.

They spoke no more about it the whole evening. As the Winchesters were leaving to check into a motel room, Sheila gave Dean the address to the lab. Dean promised he would be there first thing in the morning as he shrugged on his leather jacket. He walked out the door, and Sam followed without a word.

They didn't speak or look at each other the whole ride to the room, upon checking in, or even when they were unpacking. Sam knew that Dean just needed some time to process everything, so he let his brother be alone with his thoughts. Sam also knew what Sheila's unspoken plea was, even if Dean didn't yet understand. Sheila wanted Dean to take custody of their daughter after she was gone. Dean would have to raise a teenage girl he didn't even know.


	2. Chapter 2

Dean was awake, showered, dressed and lacing up his boots before the sun even peeked over the horizon the next morning. His mind was mostly clear; he knew what he had to do. Dean just grunted when Sam asked him in a bleary voice if he wanted his moral support at the clinic this morning. It wasn't until he was flying down the road in the Impala with Kansas blaring over the speakers, that he realized he was about two hours too early. Great.

Without so much as blinking, Dean swerved sharply to the other side of the road where he saw a diner; He didn't even pay attention when he cut off another driver, and didn't hear their horn blaring angrily at him. He walked into the diner in a daze, and sat down at the counter.

"Bad morning?" The pretty waitress smiled at him, and he couldn't even muster up a smile in return. He could only nod as she held up the decanter full of hot coffee, and he forced himself to get lost in it's comforting warmth. _Yeah, just like you got lost in Sheila's comforting warmth, which landed you here in the first place._ It was shell shock, it had to be. Dean had never been prone to shock before, but this whole thing was new territory for him. He wasn't sure how it was all going to work out, but he never shirked responsibility. He must have sat there staring at the counter for a good twenty minutes before he gave himself a mental kick. The waitress must have given him a refill twice already, and he didn't even look up.

The coffee was hot, near scalding, but that didn't stop Dean from gulping it down. He stood up with new purpose and threw a couple of bills on the counter. In seconds, he was back on the road. Having decided to face this thing, he just had to tackle it. If he had to be a father, then he would be a good father. After all, he had practically raised Sammy and he was good at protecting him. A bubble of hope rose inside of him, but almost instantly popped. He suddenly knew he wasn't cut out for this. Raised Sammy? Sure, but look what happened there. He couldn't keep the kid straight, _couldn't keep him safe. _It was back to square one with Dean's emotions.

Dean was so lost in his own thoughts, that he didn't even notice that he'd already arrived at the clinic. Not that it mattered, it was still too early for it to be open. He sat there wrestling with his inner demons, as it were. Who knows how long he sat there.

There was a sharp tap on his driver window, which made Dean almost jump out of his skin. He rolled down the window while inwardly cursing himself for not paying attention to his surroundings.

"Dean Winchester?" The woman with dark curly hair and a white lab coat asked with a smile. Dean gathered his nerves and smiled back. He stepped out from the car,

"Yes. You must be Sheila's friend Margaret?" Dean held out a nervous hand to shake. Margaret laughed a little when she shook his sweaty hand and said,

"Don't be so nervous there, buddy. It's not like we're testing you for HIV." Dean was immediately put at ease. Now _this_ woman he could get along with. Not that he had any business getting along with _any_ woman, considering his current predicament. Margaret beckoned him to the door of the lab, which she unlocked. It only took her a moment to flick on a few lights and lead Dean into the lab room. Dean sat in one rolling chair, and she the other. Margaret gathered the few supplies she would need with a practiced ease.

"Okay, I'll just need to get a sample from you, then you'll know the results this afternoon." She waited with a test tube in her hand, and expectantly looked to Dean. The man in question stared at her. It only took a moment for him to gain his cool as he cocked up one eyebrow and turned on the charm.

"What kind of sample?" He teased. Margaret laughed again, her ruby red lips pulling back to show all her teeth.

"Relax! It's just a mouth swab, for God's sake." Margaret was right. Dean had decided to play this whole thing cool, and just take it one step at a time. _That's right, just get it together. This isn't like you at all. Handle this like a man at least, Dean. _His inner monologue almost sounded like John right now.

Margaret pulled a long Q-tip from the test tube and poised over Dean to swab his mouth. Dean opened up and allowed her to perform the test. He didn't believe that it could be this easy. She popped the sample back into the test tube and carefully labeled it.

"Alright, we're all set. Like I said, you'll have the results by this afternoon." Dean just nodded and stayed where he was. He was honestly intending to just wait in that very spot until the results came in. Margaret looked at him pointedly until he got the hint to get up and leave.

After grabbing his jacket from the back of the chair and shrugging into it, he knew that there was only one thing to do. The engine of his baby roared to life and he spun the tires wildly just getting out of the parking lot. He had a one track mind at the moment, and it didn't take him long to end back up in the driveway where all this started.

Dean only hesitated a moment before knocking firmly on the door. He reasoned with himself that it probably wasn't too early. He wasn't yet prepared when the door was flung open.

"Keep it down, would ya? My mom is sleeping!" The girl at the door made Dean's heart freeze in his chest. He saw his own features, feminized, and Sheila's features, miniaturized. Somehow the two of their looks were blended into one beautiful girl. He used to despise people who picked out someone's features in a baby; Grandma's chin, Mom's eyes, Uncle Tommy's smile. He understood it now. Dean saw his own lips paired with a strong jaw, and Sheila's beautiful wide eyes. He was snapped out of his reverie by Valerie's sharp tone,

"Are you going to come in, or just stand there with a dumb look on your face?" Oh yeah, and Dean's attitude was prevalent as well. He cleared his throat awkwardly and stepped inside. Suddenly the collar on his shirt felt much too tight, and his leather jacket was much too hot. The strong hunter who ran into metaphorical (and literal) burning buildings for a living had the sudden urge to down a bottle of booze to numb his emotions. He cleared his throat again and pulled at his shirt.

"Well, uh, I guess you know," He began, stuttering all the while. He could really use that drink right about now. The girl in front of him was shooting daggers with the look she was giving him.

"I know who you are and why you're here." At least it was to the point. Dean moved slowly over to the couch as if he were in the same room with a wild animal; a preteen girl is practically the same thing. He sat down gingerly and put his elbows on his knees.

"So tell me about yourself." It seemed like a safe place to start. Valerie flicked her long blonde hair behind her shoulder and sat down opposite Dean on the loveseat.

"Well, let's see, where do I start here?" There was just a hint of acid to her voice, but Dean didn't catch the warning in time, "Oh yeah, my mom is dying of cancer. I'll be left all alone with some one-night-stand homeless loser; Ripped away from all my friends and the only life I've ever known, all because my absent 'father' didn't know how to keep it in his pants."

Dean laughed mirthlessly and instantly lost all of his previous unease. Attitude he could handle.

"Well, gee, why don't you tell me how you really feel?" He retorted. He wasn't really being snarky, he was just showing that he was tough enough to handle what the girl was dishing out. Valerie bristled up at his comment, but was cut off when Sheila shuffled into the living room.

"I see you two have become acquainted." She gave them both a small smile. She had no illusions, and didn't expect them to bond so quickly. She knew that they'd be good for each other when the time came. They'd keep each other on their toes. They were so alike, how could they not be right for each other?

Valerie jumped right up when her mom came into the room, and helped her over to a chair to sit down. Dean hadn't even noticed before how weak Sheila really was. He felt a sharp pang of… Guilt? Heartache? Pity? It was all he could do to keep from crumbling from the inside out. Valerie carefully covered Sheila with a blanket and brought her some coffee from the kitchen. Valerie's tender care for her mother touched Dean's heart in a big way, even though he would probably never admit it.

The rest of the morning flew by too fast, but it was pleasant. Dean stayed, they all talked, and the angsty girl seemed to have run out of scathing remarks. Dean could see that Valerie was hurting, but she put on a brave face for her mom. She was really like him after all. Even when Sheila had to lay back down for a nap a couple hours later, the tension wasn't unbearable. The duo talked about safe, mundane, things and that was just how they both wanted it. They weren't even really getting to know each other, it was more like they were just getting _used_ to each other.

Dean started looking through some takeout menu's for something to order for everyone's dinner, when his phone started buzzing in his jacket pocket. He picked up the phone and answered in his usual fashion,

"Yeah." It was Margaret from the clinic, with the test results. Dean interrupted her before she said anything else, "You know what, it's okay. Just keep the paperwork on file for later." He sat the phone back down and continued what he was doing. Dean didn't need some test results to know what he already saw in front of him...That he was a father now.

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A/N: Thanks for reading, everyone! There's lots more to come, so stick with me! Thanks to my wonderful Beta reader, KayValo87 who made this chapter go smoothly.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Thanks for reading, everyone! Sorry for the delay, but here is chapter 3.

* * *

Later that night, Dean went back to the motel room in almost as much of a haze as he left that morning. It was funny, he actually felt happy for the first time in a long while. Being with Sheila and Valerie just felt… _Right._ The man even had a smile on his face when he was unloading his gun at the tiny table in the room. Dean didn't seem to notice anything around him, but Sam forgot all about the research he was doing and stared.

"Wow. Did you have a good day or something?" Whatever made Dean smile made Sam grin from ear to ear. Dean looked up at his younger brother and leaned back in his chair with his hands behind his head in a relaxed fashion. It seemed to Sam that his brother recounted every minute of the day that he spent with mother and daughter. The circumstances with Sheila were horrible, but this was good for Dean. It was too bad that he hadn't known about his daughter sooner, things might have been different. Hell, Dean's entire tragic life might have been different.

"Hey, check this out," Sam started once he got up the nerve "I found this thing, it's a possible case about five hours away in Minneapolis. Men going missing off the highway, sounds like a Woman in White kind of deal. Anyway, I thought that maybe I would go check it out while you get settled here. You know, it'll be good for you and Valerie to spend some time together before…"

A pained expression crossed Dean's face at the mention of the impending tragedy, but otherwise he showed no emotion. The truth was, Sammy couldn't have suggested anything more perfect.

"Awesome. Little brother finally wants to fly solo, huh? Keep me on speed dial if you run into something that's too much for you to handle." He joked about it, but they both knew this was the best plan, just like they both knew that Sam was more than capable of handling cases on his own.

In the morning, Dean dropped his brother off at the car rental place just after 7. From there, he picked up some doughnuts and drove to Sheila's again. It didn't surprise him this time when Valerie was the one to answer the door. He held up the bag of donuts with a smile,

"Brought breakfast." After stepping inside, he quickly made himself at home on the couch in the living room. Valerie picked up a nearby brush and ran it through her hair a few times before throwing it into a ponytail. She eyed the donuts warily.

"Mom never lets me eat that kind of stuff, you know. The chinese last night was a stretch, but this?" She let out a short laugh "I mean, there's nothing 'green' about it at all."

"Oh I don't know," Dean smirked as he rifled through the bag and pulled out a donut "This one has green sprinkles." He winked conspiratorially at her. Valerie gave in to temptation and took the pastry. She took a big bite of the gooey, chocolate covered delicacy and rolled her eyes in ecstasy.

"Mom's going to kill you," she mumbled through a mouthful, then swallowed. "I'll have to take the rest of it with me or I'll be late." She put down the donut on the table and grabbed her shoes from under the bench by the front door. Dean looked confused.

"Where could you possibly be going so early in the morning?" His tone was a little suspicious, and the girl stared at him like he had two heads.

"Uh, _school._ It's Monday." Duh. He'd almost forgotten about _that_ aspect of growing up. "Yeah, mom won't let me skip the semester. It sucks that she has to be by herself all day when I could be taking care of her. Instead, I have to waste my time hearing about stuff I already know. It's not fair." Valerie grabbed her backpack and stuffed a few necessary items into it while Dean thought of the best approach to the situation. It took him a minute because this whole thing was new to him. Sam would've known the right thing to say.

"I know it sucks, but your mom's right. School is really important. Hey, if it makes you feel any better, you know that I'm here now. I'll do whatever it takes. You just focus on your work, and I'll take care of everything here." He stood up and put his hand comfortingly on her shoulder. "I'm not going anywhere, kid."

Dean wanted to hug her, to tell her everything was going to be all right, but she pulled away from him. She had grabbed her bag and was out the door before he could even tell her to have a good day. Valerie may put on a tough face, but she respected her father for that comment.

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For the next few days, the routine was mostly the same. Dean drove to Sheila's early enough each morning to pick up breakfast and see Valerie off to school. He would spend the day with Sheila when she wasn't sleeping, had quality time with Valerie in the afternoon and spent evenings with the two of them together. Sheila was no longer well enough to want to cook, and her daughter didn't yet know her way around the kitchen, so Dean mostly ordered take out of some kind or another for dinner. It was all turning into a pretty good system.

Father and daughter were slowly starting to figure each other out. Dean passed the time by recounting his adventures with Sam, only slightly embellished. Valerie talked of nothing but her mom. It really broke Dean's heart, though he would probably claim it was made of stone. Sheila was her whole world. The poor girl should be coming apart at the seams, but she acted like everything was fine. Dean knew from his own experience that it was a defense mechanism.

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The days were flying by much too fast, and it was Saturday already. At least Valerie got to spend all weekend with her mom, who was getting sicker every day. It was really starting to show. Sheila slept a lot of the time now, and was in almost constant pain even through medication.

Dean and Valerie sat at the dining room table, he was teaching her how to play poker. He probably wouldn't have done so if Sheila hadn't been taking a nap. There was a sharp knock on the door and Valerie bounced up to answer it. Dean glanced at her hand and saw that she only had a pair of four's. The kid had a great poker face.

Valerie pulled open the door and looked up (and up, and up) at the man standing there. He didn't have to tell her who he was. Freakishly tall with long hair? Must be her father's brother. She motioned to Dean's direction and let the man in without a word.

Relief flooded through Dean when he saw his little brother. He'd been secretly anxious about Sam all week and hadn't even gotten a phone call. Not that Sam needed to check in or anything, but it sure would've helped his brother relax a little. More than once in his life Dean had wished he could just keep the geek on a leash, it'd be much safer that way.

The two men shared a silent conversation. Sam just nodded to say that everything went smoothly, and Dean knew that his brother wouldn't have come back if the job wasn't finished. Sam turned to Valerie, who had seated herself back at the table.

"Hey, I'm Dean's brother Sam. I'm really happy to meet you." He had his full charm turned on, even if he didn't know it himself. Valerie gave him a funny look.

"There's no way I'm calling you Uncle Sam, no matter how patriotic that red and blue plaid is." Dean snorted with laughter, which encouraged Valerie to continue teasing "You know, I could give you a haircut myself since you apparently don't have the time or own a pair of scissors." She said all this with a totally straight face, which made Dean laugh even harder. Sam just smiled and blushed, he knew that she was only kidding.

The three spent most of the rest of the afternoon in their own personal poker tournament. It was a happy time for all of them.

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The next day, Sam found another nearby case and drove to investigate while Dean spent his time with Sheila and Valerie. He knew that's what was important right now, as much as he wanted to be out hunting again. This time, Dean just packed up the motel room and moved into Sheila's spare bedroom.

During these days, Dean spent much of the daytime at the sick woman's bedside. She told him about how the arrangements should be done once she was gone, the contents of her Will, and about how her family was likely to react to him. As hard as it might be for him to hear, she had to warn him about certain family members.

"Dean, I have to tell you something important." Her voice was raspy "Valerie can never go to live with my parents. _Not ever_. Not even for one night. Promise me." She sounded so adamant. Dean didn't question or hesitate. He didn't even blink.

"I swear to you that will never happen." He knew it had to be something extreme if she was saying something like this, and he fully intended on keeping this promise.

A couple more weeks passed with Dean sticking around and Sam making himself scarce with new cases. There were a few days when Sheila seemed overtaken with a new life. She was up and about more, in less pain, and even spending some time teaching Valerie how to cook. They were precious days, but over much too quickly.

Sheila got much worse. Dean agreed, after Valerie begged him, that it was best for her to skip a few days of school. There was now a nurse with Sheila throughout the day, so skipping school was mostly for the girl to be able to spend as much time with her mom as possible. She was too grief stricken to focus anyway. Dean knew it wouldn't be long now.

Early in the morning not too long after, Dean heard a piercing scream from the nearby master bedroom. Even as he ran in to check on his daughter's safety, he knew what had happened. Sheila had died. Valerie was on her knees on the bedroom floor. He took the sobbing girl into his strong arms and just held her. She cried and cried, and just when it seemed she had cried herself out, a new wave of tears would come. She was like this for what seemed like hours, but Dean didn't mind. It was better for her to get it out.

When finally she was focused enough to stand on her own, Dean allowed her to sit on the bed and spend some last minutes with her mother. He vaguely hoped that Sheila had a kind reaper to lead her soul away. A couple of men from the funeral home had come to take her body, and Dean waited as long as he could before he pulled Valerie away so they could do their job.

Being pulled away from her mother seemed to awaken Valerie, and she fought as hard as she could. She was too upset to form words, but she could still throw punches. It didn't matter, her father was much too strong for her. He half dragged, half carried her into another room so she wouldn't have to watch the men put Sheila in a body bag. Dean understood what the girl was going through, and didn't blame her for lashing out. He wished that he could have sheltered her from all this, and he wished that she could have had more time, decades more, with her mother.

It wasn't until late that night, when Valerie had finally cried herself to sleep when Dean made the phone call to his brother. Luckily enough, Sam had already gotten back and wasn't too far away. All day, he'd had to keep his own emotions bottled up for his daughter's sake; but they all came flooding out when Sam walked through the front door. They hugged fiercely for a few long minutes. After sitting down on the couch Sam asked his brother if he wanted to talk about it. The grieving man tried to say what had happened but he couldn't get most of the words out. After all day of holding it in, all Dean could do was cry. He wasn't crying for himself, or even for Sheila; he was crying for his brokenhearted daughter, and for all that she'd endured that day.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry for the delay, but here is chapter 4. I really hope you like it! I promise to update quickly next time, so thanks for your patience.

* * *

Valerie was in such a state of deep depression the next day, she hardly even spoke. Dean had to urge her to eat, but even then it would only be a couple of bites at a time. In the meantime, there were phone calls to make. Family members had to be notified, final arrangements made, the lawyer had to be contacted. It was a living nightmare. Luckily, Dean had enlisted help in Sheila's cousin Tracy.

Sheila had given Dean her cousin's number several days ago as the person to contact who would take care of all the paperwork once she was gone. Tracy had been a Godsend. Once he'd made that one phone call, Tracy was a woman on a mission. She made all the calls, filled out all the paperwork, and told everyone who needed to be told. Dean hadn't even met the woman yet. Tracy had even organized a select group of people to bring over meals to the brothers and Valerie so they wouldn't have to worry about those things. She placated family members who wanted to force their way in to the house, and she gave others a job to do when they felt useless.

With Tracy at the helm, all he had to do was talk to whomever was at the door or on the phone, and keep one eye on Valerie at all times. It's not that he suspected she might try to harm herself, but it was better safe than sorry.

On the second day, when Valerie was at least able to take care of herself again, Dean let a select few of her friends visit her for awhile. Tracy had flagged a few of the girl's friends as the ones she was closest to. Dean let the three girls into the house with a sharp look and a no nonsense attitude. They got the picture. He wouldn't accept them making his daughter more upset than she already was.

While the girls were shut with Valerie in her room, Dean was like a mother with a newborn baby the way he was hovering just outside the door. He needn't have worried, those girls were her friends whose only intentions were helping.

Dean was starting to go a little stir crazy being cooped up in the house by the third day. Sam had felt unnecessary, so he was out doing a job in Magic Town USA, as Dean liked to call it. It was a job investigating three magicians and some douchebag guy with eyeliner. The older brother was sure he wouldn't miss much, but he needed a job for himself. Though he had a job here and now taking care of Valerie and making sure she was okay, he still felt restless.

That afternoon, Sheila's lawyer showed up at the door. Dean introduced himself and let the man in. Mr. Pollak sat himself down at the dining room table and started shuffling through his briefcase for the right papers, while Dean extracted Valerie from her room. The girl was ashen faced with unkempt hair, but at least she was out of bed and dressed. Not much more could be asked of her in her time of grieving.

Mr. Pollak didn't take long to explain to Valerie that her mother had basically left everything to her. The house, the car, and enough money to go to college. All of it was put into a trust for her, for when she turned 18. Valerie didn't seem to hear much of it, but Dean took it all into stride. He hadn't even considered college.

* * *

The day of the funeral arrived at last. It had only been a few days since Sheila had passed away, but it felt like half a lifetime for everyone involved. All of the particulars were settled nicely by Tracy, whom Dean finally got to meet at the ceremony, and all Father and Daughter had to do was show up.

Valerie had a death grip on her father while they were standing by the coffin in the graveyard, and Dean's heart was hurting for her. She might have been dying inside, but she had on a brave face in front of all the guests. Dean was secretly glad that his brother was there to help him through this, he couldn't do it without him. It was time for people to give their speeches, and Valerie was the first one up. Dean was surprised that she went up; he didn't even know that she had words prepared.

If Valerie was nervous no one was able to tell. Though her hands shook slightly, her voice was strong when she said,

"My mom was the best mom in the entire world, and I'll tell you why. She never missed a dance practice, let alone a recital. In fact, she never missed anything that was important to me. Not ever. She did everything with love. My mom would always hum or sing when she was cooking dinner, and she swore that it made the food taste better. It did. She was always right beside my bed when I was sick, even if she was sick too. She was the kind of woman who never sat still. She worked at her job, drove the carpool most days, and still made sure there was a hot meal on the table every night. She raised me all by herself, and never once complained. She had a good attitude about life no matter what, even during these last few weeks when she got really sick. She made sure that I would be taken care of even after she was gone. I can't say enough good things about her, except to say that no one will ever be able to replace her. She was my whole world, and I was hers. She was the kind of woman who always thought of herself last, if at all. She was so strong through her whole illness, even when _none_ of her family or friends were there to help. She never once complained, though, even though I knew how much it hurt her to have everyone abandon her in her greatest hour of need." She shot a glare over the small crowd before adding sarcastically, "However, I'm so _glad_ all of you were able to find time in your busy schedules to make it here today." The brothers shared a quick look, and Dean was forcing back a small smile. Valerie continued, "But we're not here to talk about you. I loved my mom. I love her still, more than anything. She was a superwoman, and no one will ever be able to tell me differently. She was equally nice to family, friends, neighbors and complete strangers. She never had a bad word to say about anyone, even if they deserved it. There never lived a kinder, wonderful, more loving woman on all this earth. I just hope I can become half the woman that she was."

Valerie finished the words she had written and went to stand next to her father again. Her face was hard and her back was straight with her chin held high. The crowd was so silent, the only sound was the slight breeze rustling the leaves of the oak trees. Dean was so proud of her that his heart could burst, and he gave her a warm hug of encouragement. Sam's eyes were glistening with unshed tears. He vaguely wondered if it was worse to have had a mother such as Sheila and lost her, or to have never known a mother at all.

* * *

The funeral procession went to Tracy's house after Sheila was buried, which was a blessing that meant that Dean and Valerie didn't have to focus on making any special preparations. However, at Tracy's house it was much harder to avoid Sheila's more intense family members than back at Sheila's or at the funeral. As soon as Dean walked into the house it seemed that he was swarmed under with hostile glances and questions. Many people didn't know or care who he was, and that was good, but others knew exactly who he was and that he was taking custody of Sheila's daughter. There were way too many people at that house that thought they would make a better candidate to be the girl's guardian. To be honest, Dean could hardly blame them. He had doubts about himself, so he supposed it was only natural for others to doubt him. Day by day, although he hadn't admitted it out loud, Dean wondered if he could pull off fatherhood. He wasn't prepared. The only good example of a father he'd ever had was Bobby, who had tried his best to give the brothers a little bit of normalcy in childhood. In truth, the oldest Winchester was afraid that he'd be exactly like his own father, John. He couldn't put Valerie through what he'd been through growing up.

Valerie mingled with her family and mother's friends for quite some time, and then headed off to the kitchen to get a little quiet time. Sam mingled a little too, though he steered clear of any personal questions. He was good at socializing and making people feel comfortable around him. Dean stood off to the side with a plate of food and tried to fend off people's prying questions, well meaning or otherwise. His glare was mostly good enough to keep the masses at bay. No matter what he was doing, or how hard he seemed to be concentrating on something he always kept one unobtrusive eye on his daughter to make sure no one was bothering her. People seemed to sense that. Unknown to everyone, though, was the fact that Sam was keeping an eye on Dean the entire afternoon to make sure _he_ was doing alright.

Dean stood and followed Valerie into the kitchen about one minute after she went in. He didn't want to seem too overbearing, but he had to make sure she was okay. She was keeping herself together brilliantly in public, but she let a few tears slip out when she thought no one was looking. The girl tried to hide the evidence of her crying when her father walked into the kitchen, but you can't con a con man. Dean pulled her into a brief, strong hug. He wasn't much of a softie on the outside, but his warmth washed over her and made her feel okay again. Dean put his hand under her chin to tilt her head back so she could see him,

"Have you eaten anything today?" He asked sternly, even though he knew the answer. The girl dried her eyes and shook her head. Dean looked at her pointedly, and she got the hint. Sam cleared his throat as he walked in to announce his presence. Valerie gave him half a smile as she tucked her long blonde hair behind her ears and walked to the other side of the kitchen to open the fridge. She snorted when a bad smell leaked out.

"Gross! Something is rotten in here, it's really strong. Smells like rotten eggs or something." It seemed like an innocent enough statement to Valerie, but both brothers were suddenly on Red Alert and she had no idea why. Dean pulled her away and unconsciously shielded her with his body while Sam went to investigate the fridge. He found the smell and it's source on the bottom shelf, and stood up to nod towards his brother. It was sulfur; there was a demon somewhere nearby.


End file.
